Cambria Press author and series coeditor Sean Kelly has been weighing in on the spending fights in Washington, DC. On the eve of the temporary resolution of the shutdown and debt crisis Kelly was invited by Al Jazeera to offer his analysis of the likelihood of default. Prior to the resolution of the debt crisis Kelly said:
“No one should underestimate the possibility that the debt ceiling will not be raised, and that the country will default on its debt obligations. The Republican Party is so hopelessly internally fractured at this point that no single policy alternative can gain enough support to produce a partisan majority on the House floor. This crisis may come down to a choice for John Boehner: 1) sacrifice his Speakership—by moving a debt limit increase that fails to attract a majority of Republicans, passing with Democratic support and ending in an anti-Boehner revolt within the GOP—or, 2) sacrifice the country by allowing the debt ceiling to shatter, causing the country to stop paying its bills.”
In his view the extreme wing of the Republican Party was putting immense pressure on Speaker Boehner; he said, “They’re pushing Boehner to the point where he is going to have to decide if he is going to take one for the country or take one for the team.”
What does he think in the wake of the resolution? Dr. Kelly’s response was that: “The fundamentals have not changed. The Tea Party faction of the Republican Party remains immune to calls for compromise. I think the Republican mainstream hoped to ‘teach them a lesson’ about what it takes to get things done in Washington, and that it was pointless to challenge Obamacare by using the Continuing Resolution and Debt Ceiling. Tea Party Republicans did not learn a thing from the shutdown and debt fight. Since this is a short-term deal they see an opportunity to get another bite at the apple after the first of the year. I suspect that we will be back here in three months witnessing the same fight. And Tea Party members won’t pay a price for it—their constituents are glad they took on the President and the establishment; Republicans who compromised are being criticized for being RINOs [Republican In Name Only].”
Dr. Kelly’s publications include Jimmy Carter and the Water Wars (CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title) and Doing Archival Research in Political Science. Books in the Cambria Politics, Institutions, and Public Policy in America Series he coedits with Dr. Scott Frisch have also earned outstanding reviews.
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